Belichick keeps team grounded

Thursday

PHOENIX - Long before the New England Patriots' players had their sights set on perfection, their no-nonsense coach did.

Back when the Patriots were 2-0, Bill Belichick had six plays on tape cued up for a team meeting.

Three were incomplete passes by Tom Brady from that day's practice. The other three were nearly the same poor throws from last season against the Buffalo Bills, who were that week's opponent.

"See if that's going to work this week," Belichick said, criticizing throw after throw.

The Patriots' season-long road to a perfect season has always been grounded by Belichick's reminders about how imperfect they are.

Win all your games in the regular season, and Belichick will find a breakdown in coverage. Set the NFL record for points scored, and he'll cite a dropped pass. And advance to your fourth Super Bowl in seven years, and he'll still greet players with that typical dour expression.

"The point is you have to take the coaching," Brady said. "You will come out of the meeting thinking he's all (ticked) off. But you just have to realize that the expectations are extremely high for him.

"He's the greatest coach of all time, as far as I'm concerned."

Belichick's tough-love philosophy has put New England on the brink of history in the Arizona desert, but his coaching style can be traced back to the banks of the Severn River.

When Belichick's father was a longtime assistant at the Naval Academy, he would let his son sit in on film sessions and watch practice.

This is where Belichick inherited his love for the game and the toughness it takes to win.

"He was a mentor and someone I could talk to for advice that was unconditional," Belichick said. "He wouldn't tell me what I wanted to hear. He would tell me what he thought."

If the Patriots win Sunday, the argument can be made that Belichick is the greatest NFL coach of all time.

A win would be his fourth Super Bowl title, tying Chuck Noll for most in league history. He also would become the first coach to direct a team to a 19-0 season.

Despite their impeccable season, Belichick is not always seen as the perfect coach.

Some question whether his success is attributed to having Brady (Belichick is 100-26 with him and 42-58 without him). Some raise eyebrows over his role in Spygate earlier this season.

Bad time in Cleveland

And others are still trying to figure out how he has become a "genius" with the Patriots after failing with the Cleveland Browns (1991 to 1995), where he was known to alienate players, ownership and fans with his gruff personality.

Ravens General Manager Ozzie Newsome, who worked with Belichick in Cleveland, said Belichick was beginning to change near the end of his run with the Browns.

Belichick started to delegate responsibility because he began to trust people, and he was communicating better with players.

This translated to the field, where Cleveland went 11-5 after three losing seasons and went to the playoffs in 1994. The next year, the Browns started 4-2.

"Things were in place for us to move forward," Newsome said.

But Owner Art Modell announced the Browns were moving to Baltimore, sending the team in a tailspin. The Browns lost six of their final seven games and finished 5-11.

"I remember being in his office (after the move was announced) and him asking if this has happened before, let's talk to them. And there was nothing," Newsome said. "There was no one that could tell us what they did in this situation and what they learned from it. When your players' focus is not on the field, then you're in trouble."

More than a decade later, Belichick has distanced himself from those days in Cleveland by guiding the Patriots to a 105-39 record, including 14 playoff victories.

He still isn't much of a conversationalist with players, but he doesn't treat them purely as chess pieces anymore.

"Every once in a while, you get his personality coming out," cornerback Asante Samuel said. "When he does, everybody's laughing and smiling because you know he's happy. But you'd better enjoy it, because you don't see that much."

Players rarely see Belichick leave the Patriots facility. He's there at 5:30 a.m. when players arrive, and he'll still be there at 10 p.m. when they go home.

Most players have never seen him sit down in the cafeteria and eat a meal. They usually spot him grabbing some chips before heading to his office.

"What you see isn't too far from what we get," linebacker Mike Vrabel said. "He's not trying to make friends. He's not trying to be somebody's buddy. We have plenty of those. He is trying to be the best coach for his team that he can be."

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